Former Kiambu Governor William Kabogo has urged Kenyans to stop online betting which he noted was impoverishing them.
Reacting to a viral photo of a young boy holding a placard complaining that his father lost all his salary through betting, Kabogo termed betting as a scam and advised people against participating in it.
In a post on his official Facebook page, the billionaire politician said online betting was only benefitting the betting companies while making so many Kenyans poor.
"When I saw this I felt terrible. I’ve tried to tell people to stop betting and that it’s a sort of scam that enriches a few and makes very many people poor. They collect say Sh20 from 1 million people, that is 20 million and they give out 2 million. Who’s fooling who. Stop betting!! Kwa ufupi betting ni ka Harambee lakini hi ni yakuchangia wadosi (In short betting is like fundraising for the rich)" posted the former county boss.
Kabogo's remarks come at a time the government has announced plans to shut down some of the betting companies.
In a notice issued by Interior Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang'i last month, the government vowed the revoke licenses of companies which will not provide proof of tax compliance by July 1, 2019.
The CS said that was the only way to regulate the industry which he observed was 'destroying' lives of so many young people.
“Are we telling our children that it is right to bet and do nothing more to improve their lives? More than 500,000 of our youth have been blacklisted by lending institutions because they borrow and hardly repay,” Matiang'i said as quoted by Daily Nation.
“Many borrow and lose the money on betting. This is not the right way to run a country," he added.